You are invited to participate in the conference of the ISFNR Belief Narrative Network on "Nature Spirits: Continuity and Change,” which is going to take place in Zugdidi, Georgia, 1-4 October, 2014.

Nature spirits were among the very first topics of folk narrative research. Since the romantic era, these belief traditions and their study have undergone remarkable changes. In the light of contemporary folklore research, it is time to update our scholarly views on the supernatural in the natural and to problematize the whole concept of nature spirit. While this classical category is practical in indexes, it can be alien to vernacular interpretations. The BNN conference "Nature Spirits: Continuity and Change” invites researchers to discuss historical and contemporary views on spirits in the natural environment both as objects of study and features of living belief traditions. The aim of the conference is to form an overall picture of beings encountered in or associated with certain natural environments in belief tradition, and to discuss related theoretical, methodological and conceptual questions. We welcome academic presentations on nature-related spirits and powers, their places in the landscape and the vernacular discourses they inspire. We encourage comparisons between beings, places and times, between diverse genres and interpretations in emic and etic perspectives, as well as between research traditions and concepts. We also look forward to theoretical discussions concerning the topic of nature spirits. They can include - but need not be restricted to - the modalities of belief, the role of genre, the concept of belief narrative, or the construction of the categories of natural, supernatural or non-human in diverse discourses.

You are welcome to submit the abstract of no more than 300 words using an online registration form until 31 December, 2013.

The abstracts shall be evaluated by the BNN Committee. All applicants will be notified by 30 January, 2014, at the latest.No registration fee must be paid by the participants.Should you have any further question, please feel free to contact Ms Bela Mosia to the following address: infosymposiumisfnr@gmail.com.